Panthers break eight-game losing streak Sunday vs. Boston College

The Pitt Panthers men’s basketball team can finally let out a sigh of relief — the Panthers ended their eight-game losing streak Wednesday against the Boston College Eagles.

The Panthers and Eagles were tied 31-31 after the first half. However, the Panthers outscored the Eagles 52-41 in the second half for an 83-72 final score.

Senior forward Michael Young led the Panthers in scoring with 30 points. He was followed closely behind by fellow senior forward Sheldon Jeter, who had 17 points, while redshirt senior Chris Jones had 14. Jeter led the team in rebounds with eight rebounds, while senior guard Jamel Artis and redshirt sophomore guard Cameron Jones both led the team in assists with four each.

Only one player from the bench, freshman guard Justice Kithcart, scored for the Panthers, totaling nine points.

Boston College was led by Jerome Robinson, who scored 22 points. Fellow double-digit scorers for the Eagles included Ky Bowman (15 points) and Mo Jeffers (14). However, it was Connar Tava who led his team in boards, grabbing nine — all of which were defensive. Bowman led the team in assists with six.

After the game, Panthers head coach Kevin Stallings praised the way his players competed but mentioned that they didn’t start out the way he was hoping.

“I liked how we played outside of the first maybe six or eight minutes of the game,” Stallings said. “I didn’t think we started off the game as sharp as I would have hoped. But I thought, after that, we kicked it in and played pretty solidly. We told our guys going into the game that we thought the foul line could be a big difference, and we needed to throw it inside, we needed to drive it in there to get to the foul line. And we were obviously able to do that very successfully.”

Boston College head coach Jim Christian blamed the loss on himself.

“I thought tonight that we had a huge opportunity, especially at the half 31-31,” Christian said. “We didn’t have anybody leading the way to seize it. Mo (Jeffers) — but I don’t know if we had enough people with him. There wasn’t enough motion. There wasn’t enough passion to play, and it’s my team. It’s on me.”

What’s Next?

The Panthers will return to the Petersen Events Center on Saturday to host the Clemson Tigers. Tip-off is scheduled for 1 p.m. EST.